Nanna’s Farmhouse Chocolate Cake

This chocolate cake comes from my great-grandmother, Nanna, who lived on our family’s ranch outside Shiner, Texas. Every time we crossed the cattle guard, drove down the rock road, and honked the horn, we knew exactly what would be waiting when we stepped through the Dutch door of her 100+ year old farmhouse: chocolate sheet cake. I can still hear the guineas announcing our arrival while we looked for Uncle Herbie’s old red truck parked by the pasture, hoping there would be a new puppy or rabbit waiting to meet us. Grandaddy, who insisted he didn’t like dogs, somehow always found enough old lumber and rusty nails in the workshop to build a home for whichever one followed us back. Nanna, Grandaddy, Uncle Herbie, and even the old family farm are gone now. This cake makes me homesick for a time and place that no longer exists. Each loaf is baked from Nanna’s treasured family recipe and topped with a warm chocolate icing studded with toasted pecans. My hope is that it brings a little comfort to your table and becomes part of your family’s memories, just as it has been part of mine for generations. Ingredients Organic all-purpose flour, organic cane sugar, grass-fed butter, water, organic cocoa powder, eggs, A2 organic milk, powdered sugar, chopped pecans, baking soda, vanilla extract, ground cinnamon. Contains Wheat, milk, eggs, and pecans (tree nuts).